An errant elbow from South Sydney forward George Burgess has soured a dramatic 24-18 NRL win over Newcastle on Saturday. Souths became just the second team to win after trailing at halftime this season, overcoming a two-point deficit at the break, but it could come at a big cost.

Burgess could face time on the sideline after elbowing Knights forward Mitchell Barnett in the side of the head during the first half at McDonald Jones Stadium. Burgess, who knocked a ball on in the first tackle from the kick-off for the second time in the game, lashed out at Barnett after the hit. He was sin-binned as a result of the incident, and also placed on report.

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Rabbitohs’ centre Hymel Hunt may also find himself in hot water with the match review committee after flooring Knights fullback Brendan Elliot with a high shot. In further concerns for the Rabbitohs, halfback Adam Reynolds appeared to carry a right shoulder injury for most the match, just a week after returning from appendix surgery.

However it didn’t stop him setting-up the match-clinching try with a perfectly-timed lofted pass for winger Braidon Burns. It gave Souths a 22-12 lead with just over 20 minutes remaining, and from there they added to their lead with a penalty goal before Knights winger Ken Sio scored a late consolation try.

Knights captain Trent Hodkinson also found himself sin-binned late in the game, after telling referee David Munro he had “just cost (Newcastle) the match” after Souths won a scrum against the feed.

Meanwhile Burgess’ errant elbow headlined an unhappy day for the Rabbitohs forward. After being recalled to the starting line-up for the first time this season, the 24-year-old fumbled the first play-the-ball of the game.

Souths recovered to take a 10-0 lead after Alex Johnston and John Sutton each scored, but Burgess’ brain explosion brought the Knights back into the match. Newcastle scored twice while he was off the field, Hodkinson pivoting his way over in the ensuing set and Peter Mata’utia making the most of the numbers advantage when brother Sione put him through.

Burgess then had a chance to put the Bunnies back in the lead just on halftime. Trailing 12-10, he carried a number of Newcastle defenders over the line, only to drop the ball and be denied by the bunker. But five-eighth Cody Walker ensured it mattered little, grubbering for winger Bryson Goodwin to score in their first attacking set of the second-half to give Souths back a lead they never again lost.

Boyd Cordner of the Roosters is sent flying by the Panthers during Sydney’s NRL win. Photograph: Dean Lewins/AAP

Later on Saturday, the Sydney Roosters demonstrated their credentials as NRL title contenders with a gutsy and controversial 14-12 win over fellow high-flyers Penrith. Former Panthers No1 Michael Gordon went from zero to hero in the space of a few minutes on Saturday, scoring the 73rd-minute match winner.

The 11,043-strong Pepper Stadium crowd vented their frustrations at the referees after Latrell Mitchell appeared to throw the ball forward to Daniel Tupou in the lead-up to Gordon’s decisive try. Just a few minutes earlier, Gordon spilt a bomb and Waqa Blake picked up the spoils to cross for what appeared to be the icing on the cake for the home side.

However, it was overruled by the bunker after Tyrone Peachey and Matt Moylan were found to be offside. Gordon again proved the hero in a helter-skelter final few moments, pulling off a try-saver on Peachey.

The Roosters are 3-0 and equal on six competition points with ladder leaders Melbourne. It’s the first time the Roosters have started the season with three straight wins since Ricky Stuart led the side to the 2004 grand final. The Roosters took a 10-8 lead into half-time but the Panthers had overturned the deficit by the 58-minute mark thanks to two Nathan Cleary penalties.

Both sides threw everything at each other, but Gordon’s try – the only four-pointer of the second half – proved the difference. The Roosters’ left side was again vital, with all three of their tries going down that channel. Mitchell’s night looked like becoming a nightmare when he twice kicked out on the full from the kick-off in the first half.

The Panthers took the lead when skipper Moylan produced a no-look, cut-out flick pass to Peachey, who planted it centimetres in from the touchline in the sixth minute. The Roosters flagged their intention to send most of their traffic down their left side, and it paid off when Mitchell Pearce sent Gordon strolling through a giant hole for the first of his double.

The visitors went into the sheds up 10-8 when Mitchell sliced through, finding Pearce before backing up to score the go-ahead try. After Cleary put his side back in front, Jared Waerea-Hargreaves thought he had wrested back control when he grounded a spilt bomb, but a Shaun Kenny-Dowall knock-on in the air led to it being overturned. Blake thought he had got his side over the line, but Gordon’s try in the next set sealed the result.

Manly’s Jorge Taufua, right, is congratulated by team mates on a try in his side’s upset win over the Cowboys. Photograph: Michael Chambers/AAP

Rounding out Saturday’s action, Manly’s horror start to the 2017 NRL season ended emphatically in Townsville after they scored a much-needed 30-8 victory over North Queensland. The Cowboys were without the services of four regulars in the Saturday night clash and their injury crisis looks to have worsened, with backs Justin O’Neill and Kyle Feldt picking up knocks in the underwhelming display.

The under-fire Sea Eagles put a wretched run behind them to stun the 2015 premiers, with the visitors holding the Cowboys scoreless for the final 50 minutes. Manly started superbly, with a Dylan Walker penalty goal giving them an early lead before Johnathan Thurston balanced the ledger at 18 minutes.

North Queensland’s new-look forward pack made dents in the Manly defence despite the absence of Matt Scott and Jason Tauamalolo, and their efforts paid off when hooker Jake Granville scooted over for the game’s first try.

A hamstring injury ended the night of Cowboys centre O’Neill soon after and the forced reshuffle seemed to hurt the home side as Daly Cherry-Evans kicked a stunning 40-20 before putting Jorge Taufua over for a try with a great grubber.

Walker’s conversion tied the game at eight and the Silvertails weren’t done, with boom fullback Tom Trbojevic scooping up a poor Johnathan Thurston grubber and motoring 90m to send the visitors into the break leading 14-8.

The Sea Eagles added to their lead early in the second half through another Walker penalty and things worsened for the hosts when Nate Myles charged over to hand his side a handy 14-point lead with half an hour to go.

Ill-discipline again hurt the Cowboys, resulting in yet another Walker two-pointer before the game was bogged down for a quarter-hour with dropped balls killing a number of attacking chances at both ends. North Queensland asked plenty of questions of the Sea Eagles but the Sydneysiders were equal to the task as a Jackson Hastings four-pointer put an exclamation mark on the result.